The Meanings Behind 20 Chemical Element Names | Mental Floss The Meanings Behind 20 Chemical Element Names filed under: chemistry , language Like us on Facebook On December 30, 2015, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry announced the discovery of four new chemical elements—numbers 113, 115, 117, and 118—the first new elements added to the periodic table since 2011 . For the time being, they have the fairly clunky Latin and Greek numerical names ununtium (Uut), ununpentium (Uup), ununseptium (Uus), and ununoctium (Uuo), but, by IUPAC rules, their discovers now get the chance to officially name them. Online, there’s growing support to name one of these new “heavy metal” elements lemmium in honor of Motörhead frontman Lemmy (who died two days before they were announced), and another octarine after the fictional “color of magic” in the late Sir Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels (Pratchett died in March 2015).

Whether these two petitions will come to fruition remains to be seen—the final names are not likely to be announced until later in the spring—but as IUPAC rules demand all new elements be named after either a mythological concept or character, a mineral, a place, a property of the element itself, or a scientist [ PDF ], it seems unlikely we’ll be seeing lemmium on the walls of chemistry classes any time soon. The stories behind 20 other chemical element names are explained here. 1. LITHIUM (3) Despite being the least dense metal, lithium takes its name from the Greek word for “stone,” lithos, because it was discovered in a rock (as opposed to the other alkali metals potassium and sodium, which were discovered in plants and animals). 2. CARBON (6) The name carbon comes from the Latin word carbo, meaning “coal” or “charcoal.” A small carbo, incidentally, was a carbunculus, which is the origin of carbuncle. 3. NEON (10) Neon takes its name from neos, the Greek word for “new” (it was “newly” discovered in 1898). 4.

PHOSPHORUS (15) Phosphorus literally means “light-bearer” or “light-bringing,” as the first compound of the element glowed in the dark. A century before it became the name of element 15 in the late 1600s, Phosphorus was an alternative name for the planet Venus, whose appearance in the sky was once believed to strengthen the light and heat of the Sun. 5. VANADIUM (23) One of the transition metals, pure vanadium is a harsh steel-grey color, but four of its oxidation states produce a rainbow of solutions, colored purple, green, blue, and yellow . Because he was so impressed with how beautiful and varied these solutions were, the Swedish chemist Nils Sefström chose to name vanadium after Vanadís, an alternate name for the Norse goddess of beauty, Freya. Vanadium’s next door neighbor, chromium (24), also produces a variety of colored compounds and so takes its name from the Greek word for “color,” chroma. 6.

COBALT (27) Cobalt is often naturally found alongside or in minerals combined with arsenic, and when smelted, cobalt ore can emit noxious arsenic-laden fumes. Long before the poisonous qualities of minerals like these could be explained by science, copper miners in central Europe had no better explanation than to presume these toxic effects were supernatural, and were caused by devious underground goblins called kobolds who lived inside the rock—and it's from the German word kobold that cobalt gets its name. 7. COPPER (29) The chemical symbol for copper is Cu, which derives from the metal’s Latin name, cuprum. In turn, cuprum is descended from Kyprios, the Ancient Greek name for the island of Cyprus, which was well known in antiquity for its production of copper.

Some other chemical elements named after places include germanium (32), americium (95), berkelium (97), californium (98), and darmstadtium (110), while the elements ruthenium (44), holmium (67), lutetium (71), hafnium (72), and polonium (84) take their names from the Latin names for Russia (Ruthenia), Stockholm (Holmia), Paris (Lutetia), Copenhagen (Hafnia), and Poland (Polonia). 8. GALLIUM (31) A brittle, silvery-colored metal with a melting point just above room temperature, at 85ºF—meaning that a solid block would quite easily melt in your hand —gallium was discovered in 1875 by the French chemist Paul-Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran.

He chose to name it after Gaul, the Latin name for France, but soon after his discovery was announced, de Boisbaudran was forced to deny allegations that he had actually intended the name gallium to be a self-referencing pun on his own name: Lecoq means “the rooster” in French, while the Latin word for “rooster” is gallus. Despite explicitly writing in a paper in 1877 that France was the true namesake, the rumor dogged de Boisbaudran his whole life and has endured to today. 9. BROMINE (35) One of just two elements that are liquid at room temperature (the second being mercury), bromine usually appears as a rich, dark red-brown liquid, similar to blood, that emits fumes and has a characteristically harsh smell. Ultimately, it takes its name from a Greek word, bromos, meaning “stench.” 10. KRYPTON (36) Because it is colorless, odorless, and so difficult to discover, krypton takes its name from the Greek word for “hidden,” kryptos. 11.

STRONTIUM (38) The only chemical element named after a place in Britain, strontium takes its name from its mineral ore strontianite, which was in turn named after the town of Strontian in the Scottish Highlands near where it was discovered in 1790. 12. YTTRIUM (39) In 1787, a Swedish Army officer and part-time chemist named Carl Axel Arrhenius came across an unusually heavy, black-colored rock in the waste heap of a quarry near the village of Ytterby, 15 miles outside Stockholm. He named his discovery ytterbite, and sent a sample of the mineral to his colleague, Professor Johan Gadolin (the namesake of element number 64, gadolinium), at Åbo University in modern-day Finland . Gadolin found that it contained an element that was entirely new to science, which he called yttrium; since then, many more elements have been discovered in Ytterby’s mine, and three more—terbium (65), erbium (68), ytterbium (70)—have been given names honoring the village in which it was discovered.

Consequently, the tiny Swedish village of Ytterby remains the most-honored location on the entire periodic table. 13. ANTIMONY (51) To etymologists, antimony is probably the most troublesome of all chemical element names, and its true origin remains a mystery. Instead, various unproven theories claim that it might derive from Greek words meaning “floret” (a reference to the spiky appearance of its ore, stibnite), “against solitude” (a reference to the idea that it never appears naturally in its pure form), and even “monk-killer” (as antimony is poisonous, and many early alchemists were monks). 14. XENON (54) Like xenophobia, xenon takes its name from a Greek word, xenos, meaning “strange” or “foreign.” 15. PRASEODYMIUM (59) Because of the greenish color of its mineral salts, the lanthanide metal praseodymium takes its name from a Greek word meaning “green,” prasios—which in turn takes its name from the Greek word for a leek, prason. The dymium part is more complicated .

In 1842, a new “element” was discovered called didymium, from the Greek for "twin," so named because it was always accompanied with cerium and lanthanum (and possibly because the namer had two pairs of twins of his own). Forty years later, scientists split didymium into two different elements, praseodidymium (green twin) and neodidymium (new twin). The di- was dropped almost instantly, leaving neodymium and praseodymium. 16. SAMARIUM (62) Several famous names are commemorated on the periodic table, including Albert Einstein (einsteinium, 99), Niels Bohr (bohrium, 107), Enrico Fermi (fermium, 100), Alfred Nobel (nobelium, 102), and Pierre and Marie Curie (curium, 96). The earliest eponymous element, however, was the little-known metal samarium, which indirectly took its name from an equally little-known Russian mining engineer called Vasili Samarsky-Bykhovets.

In the early 1800s, Samarsky was working as chief clerk of the Russian mining department when he granted a German mineralogist named Gustav Rose access to a collection of samples taken from a mine in the Ural Mountains. Rose discovered a new mineral in one of the samples, which he named samarskite in Samarsky’s honor; decades later, in 1879, de Boisbaudran found that samarskite contained an element that was new to science, which in turn he named samarium. 17. DYSPROSIUM (66) Eleven years after discovering gallium and 7 years after discovering samarium, de Boisbaudran discovered the rare earth element dysprosium in 1886. It took him 30 attempts to isolate a pure sample—and consequently he named it after dysprositos, a Greek word meaning “hard to get at.” 18.

TANTALUM (73) Ten times rarer than gold in the universe, tantalum is a hard, silvery metal known for its resistance to corrosion and its chemical inertness, both of which make it extremely useful in the manufacture of laboratory equipment and medical implants. Although it’s sometimes said to have been named for the “tantalizing” frustration early chemists experienced in trying to obtain a pure sample, it’s tantalum’s unreactiveness that is the real origin of its name: Because it appears unaffected by practically anything it is submerged in or brought into contact with, tantalum is named for Tantalus, a character in Greek mythology who was punished by being forced to stand knee-deep in a pool of water below a fruit tree, both of which drew away from him whenever he reached out to eat or drink (a story which is also the origin of the word tantalize). Incidentally, Tantalus’s daughter Niobe also features on the periodic table as the namesake of element 41, niobium. 19.

URANIUM (92) Uranium was discovered by the German chemist Martin Heinrich Klaproth in 1789, who named it honor of the planet Uranus, which had also only recently been discovered. When elements 93 and 94 were discovered in 1940, they were named neptunium and plutonium so as to continue the sequence of planets. 20. MENDELEVIUM (101) The invention of the periodic table is credited to the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev in 1869, whose organization of the table allowed him not only to predict the existence of elements that had yet to be discovered at the time, but to correct what was generally understood about the properties of some existing elements. Element number 101, mendelevium, is appropriately named in his honor. Naming Chemical Compounds & Writing Chemical Formulas Binary Compounds All true binary compounds contain only two elements. The name of every binary compound ends with ï¿½ide.ï¿½ Binary compounds come in three types. They are: Type I............. the metal forms only one type of cation Type II............

the metal forms two or more types of cations Type III.......... contains only nonmetals We will look at each type, one at a time. Type I Binary Compounds For Type I binary compounds the metal present can be found in either Group 1 or Group 2 on the periodic table. The naming system for this type of compound is quite simple and is found below. Rules for naming Type I binary compounds 1. The cation is always named first and the anion second. 2. A simple cation (obtained from a single atom) takes its name from the name of the element. 3. A simple anion (obtained from a single atom) is named by taking the first part of the element name (the root) and adding the letters ï¿½IDE.ï¿½ 4. Write the name for the compound by combining the names of the ions. Name the compound RbI. ï¿½ Rb is the chemical symbol for rubidium. ï¿½ I is the chemical symbol for iodine, whose root is ï¿½iod.ï¿½ Add the ï¿½ideï¿½ ending to get iodide.

ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name rubidium iodide. Name the compound CaO. ï¿½ Ca is the chemical symbol for calcium. ï¿½ O is the symbol for oxygen, whose root is ï¿½ox.ï¿½ Add the ï¿½ideï¿½ ending to get oxide. ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name calcium oxide. Name the compound Li3N. ï¿½ Li is the chemical symbol for lithium. ï¿½ N is the chemical symbol for nitrogen, whose root is ï¿½nitr.ï¿½ Add the ï¿½ideï¿½ ending to get nitride. ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name lithium nitride. Write the formula for potassium sulfide. ï¿½ The chemical symbol of potassium is K. K is in the 1st column of the periodic table, therefore, its oxidation state is +1. ï¿½ Sulfide is derived from sulfur, whose symbol is S. Its oxidation state is -2. +1 -2 ï¿½ So far we haveï¿½ K S. ï¿½ The total positive charge must balance the total negative charge.

Therefore, we need 2 K atoms to give a total positive charge of +2. This balances the -2 charge on the sulfur. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have K2S. Write the formula for magnesium chloride. ï¿½ The chemical symbol of magnesium is Mg. Mg is in the 2nd column of the periodic table, therefore, its oxidation state is +2. ï¿½ Chloride is derived from chlorine, whose symbol is Cl. Its oxidation state is -1. +2 -1 ï¿½ So far we haveï¿½ Mg Cl ï¿½ The total positive charge must balance the total negative charge. Therefore, we need 2 chlorine atoms to give a total negative charge of -2. This balances the charge on the magnesium. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have MgCl2.

NaCl ï¿½ sodium chloride KI ï¿½ potassium iodide RbBr ï¿½ rubidium bromide MgS ï¿½ magnesium sulfide Mg3N2 ï¿½ magnesium nitride Sodium fluoride ï¿½ NaF Strontium oxide ï¿½ SrO Beryllium chloride ï¿½ BeCl2 Cesium sulfide ï¿½ Ce2S Potassium phophide ï¿½ K3P Type II Binary Compounds For Type II binary compounds the metal present is NOT found in either Group 1 or Group 2 on the periodic table. The naming system for this type of compound is found below. Rules for naming Type II binary compounds 1. The cation is always named first and the anion second. 2. A simple cation (obtained from a single atom) takes its name from the name of the element. Include a Roman numeral to indicate the oxidation number (charge) on the metal cation. 3. A simple anion (obtained from a single atom) is named by taking the first part of the element name (the root) and adding the letters ï¿½IDE.ï¿½ 4.

Write the name for the compound by combining the names of the ions. Name the compound FeCl2. ï¿½ Fe is the chemical symbol for iron. o Fe is not in the 1st or 2nd column; therefore a Roman numeral is needed in the name. Weï¿½ll come back to that shortly. ï¿½ Cl is the chemical symbol for chlorine, whose root is ï¿½chlor.ï¿½ Add the ï¿½ideï¿½ ending to get chloride. ï¿½ At this point we have iron (??) chloride. ï¿½ To find the Roman numeralï¿½ o Find the charge of the anion. ï¿½ Cl has a -1 charge. o Multiply times the number of those atoms to get the total negative charge. ï¿½ There are 2 Cl atoms. ï¿½ 2 times -1 = -2. <--- total negative charge. o Balance total negative charge with total positive charge. ï¿½ The total negative charge of -2 must be balanced with a total positive charge of +2. o Divide the total positive charge by the number of atoms to get Roman numeral.

ï¿½ There is only 1 Fe ï¿½ +2 divided by 1 = +2. The Roman numeral is II. ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name iron (II) chloride. Name the compound PbS2. ï¿½ Pb is the chemical symbol for lead. o Pb is not in the 1st or 2nd column; therefore a Roman numeral is needed. ï¿½ S is sulfur, whose root is ï¿½sulf.ï¿½ Add the ï¿½ideï¿½ ending to get sulfide. ï¿½ At this point we have lead (??) sulfide. ï¿½ To find the Roman numeralï¿½ ï¿½ S has a charge of -2. ï¿½ There are 2 sulfur atoms soï¿½. 2 x -2 = -4. <---- total negative charge ï¿½ The total positive charge must be +4. ï¿½ There is 1 lead atom soï¿½ +4 ï¿½ 1 = +4. The Roman numeral is IV. ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name lead (IV) sulfide.

Write the formula for nickel (III) oxide. ï¿½ The chemical symbol of nickel is Ni. The oxidation state is +3, as given by the Roman numeral. ï¿½ Oxide is derived from oxygen, whose symbol is O. Its oxidation state is -2. +3 -2 ï¿½ So far we have Ni O. ï¿½ In order to balance the charges we find the least common multiple (LCM) of 3 and 2. The LCM is 6. We need two Ni atoms (+6 ï¿½ +3 = 2) and three O atoms (-6 ï¿½ -2 = 3) to balance the charges. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have Ni2O3. Write the formula for lead (IV) nitride. ï¿½ The chemical symbol of lead is Pb. The oxidation state is +4. ï¿½ Nitride is derived from nitrogen, whose symbol is N. Its oxidation state is -3. +4 -3 ï¿½ So far we have Pb N. ï¿½ The LCM of 4 and 3 is 12.

We need three Pb atoms (+12 ï¿½ +4 = 3) and 4 N atoms (-12 ï¿½ -3 = 4) to balance the charges. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have Pb3N4. Write the name for iron (II) oxide. ï¿½ The chemical symbol of iron is Fe. The oxidation state is +2. ï¿½ Oxide is derived from oxygen, whose symbol is O. Its oxidation state is -2. +2 -2 ï¿½ So far we have Fe O ï¿½ Since the charges already balance there is no additional work to be done. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have FeO.

Fe2O3 ï¿½ Iron (III) oxide CuCl ï¿½ Copper (I) chloride CuCl2 ï¿½ Copper (II) chloride PbS ï¿½ lead (II) sulfide PbS2 ï¿½ lead (IV) sulfide Chromium (VI) oxide ï¿½ CrO3 Cobalt (III) sulfide ï¿½ Co2S3 Nickel (II) bromide ï¿½ NiBr2 Mercury (II) phosphide ï¿½ Hg3P2 Cadmium (II) iodide ï¿½ CdI2 Type III Binary Compounds Type III binary compounds contain no metal atoms. There are two different naming systems for Type III binary compounds: the ï¿½old systemï¿½ and the ï¿½new system.ï¿½ The old system uses prefixes to indicate the number of each atom present and the new system is identical to that used for naming Type II compounds. It is important to note that only one system can be used at a time. NEVER mix prefixes and Roman numerals. Rules for naming Type III binary compounds: the OLD SYSTEM 1.

The first element in the formula is named first, and the full element name is used. 2. The second element is named as though it were an anion: root + ide 3. Prefixes are used to denote the numbers of atoms present. (See table below) 4. The prefix mono- is never used for naming the first element. Name the compound NO2. ï¿½ N is the chemical symbol of nitrogen. Since there is only one nitrogen atom AND it is the first element the prefix mono is not used. ï¿½ O is the chemical symbol of oxygen, whose root is ox. Add the ide ending to get oxide. There are two oxygen atoms so we also add the prefix di to get dioxide. ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name nitrogen dioxide. Name the compound N2O. ï¿½ N is the chemical symbol of nitrogen. Since there are two nitrogen atoms we need to add the prefix di to get dinitrogen. ï¿½ O is the chemical symbol of oxygen, whose root is ox. Add the ide ending to get oxide. There is only one oxygen atom we add the prefix mono (mono IS used for the second element) to get monoxide.

ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name dinitrogen monoxide. Write the formula for carbon tetrachloride. ï¿½ The chemical symbol of carbon is C. There is no prefix before carbon in the chemical name, therefore, there is only 1 C atom in the chemical formula. ï¿½ Tetrachloride has the prefix tetra which means there are 4 atoms present. Chloride is derived from chlorine, whose symbol is Cl. Thus, there are 4 Cl atoms in the chemical formula. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have CCl4. Write the formula for dinotrogen pentaoxide. ï¿½ The prefix di means 2. Thus there are 2 N atoms in the chemical formula. ï¿½ The prefix penta means 5. Thus, there are 5 O atoms in the chemical formula. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have N2O5. Now let us apply the ï¿½new systemï¿½ to these same compounds. For Type III binary compounds the ï¿½new systemï¿½ is identical to that used to name Type II binary compounds.

The advantage to using the new system is that you have one less system to learn. Rules for naming Type III binary compounds: the NEW SYSTEM 1. The cation is always named first and the anion second. 2. A simple cation (obtained from a single atom) takes its name from the name of the element. Include a Roman numeral to indicate the oxidation number (charge) on the metal cation. 3. A simple anion (obtained from a single atom) is named by taking the first part of the element name (the root) and adding the letters ï¿½IDE.ï¿½ 4. Write the name for the compound by combining the names of the ions. Name the compound NO2. ï¿½ N is the chemical symbol for nitrogen. o Nitrogen is not in the 1st or 2nd column; therefore a Roman numeral is needed in the name. ï¿½ O is the symbol for oxygen, whose root is ï¿½ox.ï¿½ Add the ï¿½ideï¿½ ending to get oxide. ï¿½ At this point we have nitrogen (??) oxide.

ï¿½ To find the Roman numeralï¿½ ï¿½ O has a charge of -2. ï¿½ 2 oxygen atoms times -2 = -4. <---- total negative charge. ï¿½ The total negative charge of -4 must be balanced with a total positive charge of +4. ï¿½ +4 divided by 1 (one N atom) = +4. The Roman numeral is IV. ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name nitrogen (IV) oxide. Name the compound N2O. ï¿½ N is the chemical symbol for nitrogen. o Nitrogen is not in the 1st or 2nd column; therefore a Roman numeral is needed in the name. ï¿½ O is the symbol for oxygen, whose root is ï¿½ox.ï¿½ Add the ï¿½ideï¿½ ending to get oxide. ï¿½ At this point we have nitrogen (??) oxide. ï¿½ To find the Roman numeralï¿½. ï¿½ O has a charge of -2. ï¿½ 2 oxygen atoms times -2 = -4. <---- total negative charge. ï¿½ The total positive charge must be +2.

ï¿½ +2 divided by 2 (2 N atoms) = +1. The Roman numeral is I. ï¿½ Put the pieces together to get the name nitrogen (I) oxide. Write the formula for carbon(IV) chloride. ï¿½ The symbol for carbon is C. The oxidation state is +4, as given by the Roman numeral. ï¿½ Chloride is derived from chlorine. The charge on chlorine is -1. +4 -1 ï¿½ So far we have C Cl ï¿½ The LCM of 4 and 1 is 4. We need 1 C atom (+4 ï¿½ +4 = 1) and 4 Cl atoms (-4 ï¿½ -1 = 4) to balance the charges. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have CCl4. Write the formula for nitrogen (V) oxide. ï¿½ The symbol for nitrogen is N. The Roman numeral indicates a charge of +5. ï¿½ Oxide is derived from oxygen. The charge on oxygen is -2.

+5 -2 ï¿½ So far we have N O ï¿½ The LCM of 5 and 2 is 10. Therefore, we need 2 N atoms and 5 O atoms to balance the charges. ï¿½ Putting it all together we have N2O5. (A.K.A. Compounds that contain polyatomic ions) An ion is an atom with an electric charge (positive or negative). A polyatomic ion is a group of atoms with an electric charge. (Even though it is a group of atoms it acts like it were a single atom.) The names of nearly all polyatomic ions end with the letters ï¿½ate or ï¿½ite. Beware three exceptions: cyanide, hydroxide, and peroxide. These ions end with ï¿½ideï¿½ which can trick into thinking you have a binary compound when you actually have a ternary compound. Follow the naming systems for Type I and Type II binary compounds butï¿½ DONï¿½T CHANGE THE NAME OF THE POLYATOMIC ION.

Na2SO4 ï¿½ sodium sulfate KH2PO4 ï¿½ potassium dihydrogen phosphate Fe(NO3)3 ï¿½ iron (III) nitrate Mn(OH)2 ï¿½ manganese (II) hydroxide Na2SO3 ï¿½ sodium sulfite Calcium hydroxide ï¿½ Ca(OH)2 Sodium phosphate ï¿½ Na3PO4 Ammonium dichromate ï¿½ (NH4)2Cr2O7 Cobalt (II) perchlorate ï¿½ Co(ClO4)2 Copper (II) nitrite ï¿½ Cu(NO2)2 Naming Polyatomic Ions that Contain Oxygen There are many atoms that form several different polyatomic ions with oxygen. The naming system for these ions is based on two things: the most common ion in each series and the number of oxygen atoms compared to the most common ion. The ones that concern us most are ions of phosphorus, sulfur, nitrogen, chlorine, and carbon. Memorize these ions!

SO22- = hyposulfite Note: Some of the ions do not exist in the real world, they are written here to show how to use the naming system. Naming Acids For this class, ALL acids begin with H (hydrogen). The names of ALL acids end with the word ï¿½acid.ï¿½ There are two types of acids: those that contain oxygen and those that do not. Naming acids that DO NOT contain oxygen 1. Take the name of the anion, add the prefix ï¿½hydroï¿½ and change the ending to ï¿½ic.ï¿½ 2. Add the word ï¿½acid.ï¿½ Name the compounds HF. ï¿½ We know this is an acid because the chemical formula starts with ï¿½H.ï¿½ ï¿½ Take the name of the anion (fluoride) add the prefix ï¿½hydroï¿½ and change the ending to ï¿½icï¿½: hydrofluoric ï¿½ Finally, add the word ï¿½acid.ï¿½ ï¿½ hydrofluoric acid Name the compound HCN.

ï¿½ We know this is an acid because the chemical formula starts with ï¿½H.ï¿½ ï¿½ There is no oxygen present so we start with the prefix ï¿½hydro.ï¿½ ï¿½ Next, take the name of the anion (cyanide) and change the ending to ï¿½icï¿½: hydrocyanic ï¿½ Finally, add the word ï¿½acid.ï¿½ ï¿½ hydrocyanic acid Write the formula for hydrobromic acid. ï¿½ We know the formula starts with ï¿½Hï¿½ because it is an acid. The charge on hydrogen is +1. ï¿½ We also know that the acid does not contain oxygen because of the ï¿½hydroï¿½ prefix. ï¿½ Removing the ï¿½hydroï¿½ and ï¿½icï¿½ leaves us with ï¿½bromï¿½, the root of bromine or Br. The charge on bromine is -1. +1 -1 ï¿½ So far we have H Br ï¿½ Balance the charges to get the formula HBr.

Write the formula for hydrosulfuric acid. ï¿½ We know the formula starts with ï¿½Hï¿½ because it is an acid. The charge on hydrogen is +1. ï¿½ We also know that the acid does not contain oxygen because of the ï¿½hydroï¿½ prefix. ï¿½ Removing the ï¿½hydroï¿½ and ï¿½icï¿½ leaves us with sulfur. The charge on sulfur is -2. +1 -2 ï¿½ So far we have H S ï¿½ Balance the charges to get the formula H2S. Naming Acids the DO contain oxygen 1. Find the name of the polyatomic ion. 2. Change ï¿½ateï¿½ to ï¿½icï¿½ or ï¿½iteï¿½ to ï¿½ous.ï¿½ 3. Add the word acid. ï¿½ You know itï¿½s an acid because it starts with H. ï¿½ ClO4- is the perchlorate ion.

ï¿½ Change the ï¿½ateï¿½ to ï¿½icï¿½ and get perchloric. ï¿½ Add the word acid and get perchloric acid. ï¿½ You know itï¿½s an acid because it starts with H. ï¿½ SO32- is the sulfite ion. ï¿½ Change the ï¿½iteï¿½ to ï¿½ousï¿½ and get sulfous. ï¿½ Add the word acid and get sulfous acid. o The name is actually sulfurous acid, but I will count sulfous acid correct because it follows the naming system. Write the formula for phosphorous acid. ï¿½ The word acid tells us the first element is H. The charge on H is +1. ï¿½ We also know it is a ternary acid because the prefix ï¿½hydroï¿½ (meaning binary acid) is missing. ï¿½ Change ï¿½ousï¿½ to ï¿½iteï¿½ to get phophite. The formula for phophite is PO3-3. ï¿½ Putting it together and balancing the charges we get H3PO3.

Write the formula for each of the following compounds. 51. tin (II) nitrate 76. calcium bicarbonate 52. zinc (II) phosphate 77. calcium hydroxide 53. hypophosphorous acid 78. zinc (II) bisulfate 54. iron (III) chloride 79. silver (I) oxide 55. lithium sulfide 80. chlorous acid 56. silver (I) oxalate 81. lead (IV) oxide 57. perchloric acid 82. calcium acetate 58. potassium permanganate 83. sodium phosphate 59. strontium hypochlorite 84. copper (I) oxide 60. copper (I) sulfite 85. phosphorous acid 61. carbon (IV) sulfide 86. hydroiodic acid 62. calcium oxide 87. sodium fluoride 63. barium carbonate 88. phosphorus (V) oxide 64.

antimony (III) dichromate 89. sulfur (II) bromide 65. silicon (IV) oxide 90. aluminum (III) sulfate 66. iron (II) carbonate 91. nitrogen (III) oxide 67. sodium cyanide 92. aluminum (III) iodide 68. carbon (IV) chloride 93. iron (III) phosphate 69. cesium fluoride 94. zinc (II) perchlorate 70. sodium chromate 95. sodium dihydrogen phosphate 71. hydrosulfuric acid 96. sulfurous acid 72. aluminum (III) oxide 97. strontium carbonate 73. ammonium phosphate 98. copper (II) hydroxide 74. boron (III) fluoride 99. iron (II) oxalate 75. radium sulfate 100. phosphorous (V) sulfide Table of Elements in Greek and Latin (Rome) Language.

Sidebar Periodic Table of Elements The Greek language and Greek myth have contributed greatly to the sciences, including chemistry. This is most apparent in the Periodic Table of Elements. A table of the elements with mythological influences, or at least have the Greek language to thank for their names, is below. For kicks, I have included the Latin (Roman) terms also. (Please note: this is not the complete table of elements, only those with Greek or Latin influences.) Actinium From the Greek wordaktinos (ray) Aluminum From the Latin wordalumen, or"bitter". Antimony From the Greek words anti (opposed) and monos (solitude) Argon From the Greek wordargon (inactive) Arsenic From the Greek wordarsenikos and the Latin wordarsenicum, meaning "yellow orpiment".

Astatine From the Greek wordastatos (unstable) Barium From the Greek wordbarys (heavy) Bromine From the Greek wordbrômos (stench) Cadmium Symbol: Cd Atomic Number: 48 From the Greek wordkadmeia (ancient name for calamine) and from the Latin word cadmia.Cadmus, in Greek myth, was the founder of Thebes. Calcium From the latin wordcalcis (lime) Carbon Ceres (asteroid), and the Roman version of Demeter, the goddess of agriculture. Cesium From the Latin wordcaesius (sky blue) Chlorine From the Greek wordkhlôros (green) Chromium From the Greek wordchrôma (color) Copper From the Latin wordcyprium, after the island of Cyprus and birthplace of Aphrodite. Dysprosium From the Greek worddysprositos (hard to get at). Fluorine From the Latin wordfluo (flow) Gold From the Latin wordaurum (gold). In Roman mythology, Aurora was the goddess of dawn--golden indeed.

Helium From the Greek wordhêlios (sun); Helios in Greek mythology was the god of the Sun. Hydrogen Symbol: H Atomic Number: 1 From the Greek words hudôr (water) and gennan(generate). Heracles fought the Hydra of Lerna (a sea town) for his second labor. Iodine From the Greek wordiôdes (violet). Iridium Symbol: Ir Atomic Number: 77 From the Latin wordiridis (rainbow). The Greeks had a messenger goddess, Iris, whose colorful cape flowed behind her. Iron From the Latin wordferrum (iron) Krypton Symbol: Kr Atomic Number: 36 From the Greek wordkryptos (hidden). In modern language, words such as "encrypt" can be discerned from the Greek. Lanthanum From the Greek wordlanthaneis (to lie hidden). Lead Symbol: Pb Atomic Number: 82 Name Origin: From the Greek word protos (first). Some Greeks believd that the first god ever was Protogonus, or "first born".

Symbol Origin: From the Latin wordplumbum (lead) Lithium From the Greek wordlithos (stone) Manganese From the Latin wordmangnes (magnet) Molybdenum From the Greek word molubdos (lead) Neodymium Symbol: Nd Atomic Number: 60 From the Greek words neos (new) anddidymos (twin). Twins appear regularly in Greek myth, from the Dioscuri (Castor & Polydeuces) to the divine twins (Artemis & Apollo). Neon Form the Greek word neos (new) Neptunium After the planet Neptune, the Roman sea god, identified as Poseidon in Greek myth. Niobium Symbol: Nb Atomic Number: 41 After Niobe, daughter of mythical king (Tantalus). She had bragged about her set of seven girls and seven boys, scoffing at Leto for only having two children. Apollo and Artemis promptly killed her offspring. Niobe, in despair, was turned to stone by the gods.

Osmium From the Greek word osmë (odor) Oxygen From the Greek words oxus (acid) andgennan (generate) Palladium From the Greek goddess (Pallas) and after an asteroid Phosphorous Symbol: P Atomic Number: 15 From the Greek words phôs (light) andphoros (bearer), Phosphoros was a god of light in Greek myth. Plutonium After the planet Pluto and the Latin god of the Underworld (Hades in Greek). Potassium Symbol Origin: From the Latin word kalium Praseodymium From the Greek words prasios (green) anddidymos (twin) Promethium From the Titan Prometheus who stole fire of the sky and gave it to man. Protactinium From the Greek word protos (first) [see name origin for lead]. Radium From the Latin word radius (ray) Rhodium From the Greek word rhodon (rose) Rubidium From the Latin word rubidus (red) Ruthenium From the Latin word Ruthenia (Russia) Selenium From the Greek word Selênê, known as the goddess of the moon.

Sodium Symbol Origin: From the Latin wordnatrium (sodium) Silicon From the Latin word silex (flint) Sulfur From the Latin word sulfur (brimstone) Tantalum Symbol: Ta Atomic Number: 73 After king Tantalus, a son of Zeus who earned the disfavor of the gods for attempting to serve his son Pelops as a meal. He was condemned to the Underworld with eternal thirst and hunger though a river and fruit tree were just beyond his grasp. Technetium From the Greek word technêtos (artificial) Tellurium From the Greek word tellus (Earth) Thallium From the Greek word thallos (young shoot) Tin Symbol Origin: From the Latin wordstannum (tin) Titanium From the Greek word titanos (Titans). The Titans were the "original" gods before the Olympians. Uranium Symbol: U Atomic Number: 92 After the planet Uranus, the original sky god who was the son and spouse of Gaia, or Mother Earth. Xenon

Question: The name of which chemical element is derived from the Greek for stone?
Answer: LITHIUM